


A decision but not a choice

by MissTako



Category: Captive Prince - C. S. Pacat
Genre: M/M, Weddings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-21
Updated: 2016-09-20
Packaged: 2018-08-10 05:41:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,379
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7832536
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissTako/pseuds/MissTako
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For a prince, a wedding has nothing to do with personal affinities.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A decision

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Captive Prince Week Day One  
> Prompt: Prospects

A wedding was something he had always expected. He was a second son after all, and his older brother was very capable. But he hadn’t expected to have a choice. Marriage was a political matter, and political matters were handled by the king.

Auguste told him their father was letting him choose because he trusted Laurent’s mind and his ability to make the best decision for the country. The best alliance. Laurent doubted that. Maybe the king didn’t know what choice to make, or maybe he simply didn’t care.

There were two options.

The first one was Halvik, a daughter of the Vaskian Empress. The woman was definitely not interested in Laurent for anything more than friendship, unless Laurent suddenly decided to put more weight, and more important, more muscles and centimeters. She was a smart and powerful woman, interested in smart but mostly powerful men and women.

The second option was Damianos, crown prince of Akielos. This man was totally Halvik’s type, tall and unnaturally muscular, and Laurent wondered why he had to choose between then when they would be such a great match. Damianos would definitely be interested in Laurent, Jord said, because he had a reputation of inviting every blond person he met in his bed.

On a personal level, Laurent would prefer Halvik. He had no interested in women, and she has no interest in men that could not lift a battle horse with one hand, and a platonic marriage was very fine by him. From what he heard about Damen, the man would not agree to the no touching rule Laurent wanted to impose.

But on a political level, Akielos was the right choice. Vere’s relations with the kingdom were still tense, less than ten years after the war that left a very ugly mark on Auguste’s torso, and a political marriage would be an easy way to smooth things a little. On the other hand, relations with Vask were already friendly, despites the missteps of his uncle.

Damianos would be a powerful new ally, where a wedding with Halvik would only be the officialization of an already existing friendship. He knew that, and his father knew that, and that was probably why the king decided to let him choose. If the king had asked him to marry Damianos, Laurent would have accepted, of course, because nobody, even a prince, could discuss an order of the king. But he would have been insufferable, and an insufferable Laurent was not something anyone in the palace wanted. But by asking Laurent to make the decision, by allowing him to decide, he was preventing Laurent to throwing a fit. Laurent would take the right decision; it was a matter of pride. But he could not complain about it, since he was the one making that choice.

Of course, he could choose Halvik. She wasn’t a bad choice. She just wasn’t the best choice. And Laurent never accepted anything but the best. Even if the price was sharing a bed with the barbarian who hurt his brother at Marlas.

Laurent closed his eyes, allowing himself half a second of self-pity. Damianos was not only a prince. He was the crown prince. Which means he would have to go live with him in Ios. He would be less important than Damianos, in a country he frankly knew little about. While writing neatly “Damianos” on the marriage proposal draft, he hoped he would be able to come back to see Auguste at least once a year.


	2. The consequence

Damianos was everything Laurent expected. Huge, loud, obnoxious and disrespectful. Actually, this last trait might have been Laurent’s own fault, because he did not behave in way that was particularly deferent either. But still. He almost sent Lazar flying when he gave him the shoulder clap that was the Akielon greating. That was barbaric and Laurent didn’t want that man anyway near him.

But here they were, sitting side by side at the end of the main diner table. Laurent was silent, not particularly caring about his royal duties. Next to him, his brother was chatting animatedly with Damianos, warm enough for the both of them. The two men were getting on like a house on fire, talking about battles, sport and training like they forgot that they both almost killed each other less than ten years ago. It was them who should marry, Laurent though bitterly, even if he perfectly knew that Auguste needed to marry a woman able to bear a child. If only the Akielons had the same ideas about bastardy, Laurent would not be able to marry the Crown Prince. But even if Akielons preferred blood children, they weren’t really bothered by the idea of a bastard child. The king maker had already been chosen, according to gossips. One of the King’s lovers, a lady named Jokaste.

“Prince Laurent, you are not talking much.”

Laurent didn’t even bother to look at Damianos.

“Astute observation.”

“Be nice, Laurent.”

“I am sorry, Auguste, I am merely trying to keep some mystery until we live Arles. I will need to have things to say during the journey to Ios, I wouldn’t want to bore my fiancé.”

“You and I both know that you are able to speak for hours without prompting, you don’t need to save you conversation for later, you have plenty of things to say.”

“You and I both know that but he,” Laurent gestured to Damianos, “didn’t.

Auguste sighed.

“He will warm up to you, once he learns to know who you are.” He told the other crown prince. “He is very independent but he will be a good consort.”

“He is your brother; I don’t doubt it. And you don’t need to sell him to me, the marriage contract is already sealed.”

“Yes brother, you don’t need to _sell_ me. The engagement was signed. Only three months before the wedding, and I will officially be an Akielon.”

Auguste’s eyes widened at the bitter tone, and Laurent started eating again, knowing that his words hit.

 

***

 

Later, Auguste tried to talk to him again.

“Laurent, I though… I am not _selling_ you to them. I though you agreed with this marriage. Father said you were the one choosing the person you wanted to marry. If you are not happy I will talk to Father, I won’t leave you going alone in this country if you are not okay with it.”

“You won’t leave me alone? Like you didn’t leave me alone during the war? You promised you wouldn’t, but you did. Pardon me if I can’t really trust your words on the matter.”

“I am sorry Laurent, you know I am. But it was war. And I didn’t leave you alone, you were with our uncle.”

“Ah, yes, Uncle.” Laurent’s voice was strangely soft. “Uncle was indeed here with me.”

Letting Auguste with a confused look on his face, Laurent turned on his heels and went back to his rooms.

 

****

 

Once in Ios, Damianos seemed to drop the pretense of friendliness.

“You don’t like me.”

“I don’t have to, it is a political union, I just have to stay alive and keep you satisfied so that our countries stay allies.”

“Yes, but it doesn’t have to be just that. You could try to made our partnership at least a little bit enjoyable.”

“For you or for me? Because I suspect our definitions differ.”

“I wouldn’t know. I think I am very open about my likes and dislikes. If you want to know something about me, all you have to do is ask. But I don’t know a thing about you, besides what Auguste said to me. And even that, I sometimes wonder if he lied to me. He assured me you love books, but when I offered you some during the courtship, seeing your expression, one could think I just gifted you with a venomous snake.”

“Maybe I really like snakes, too.”

Damen laughed.

“It wouldn’t surprise me.”

Later, he found Damen waiting at his door, hands behind his back.

Laurent frowned at his gift.

“I was right; it is the exam same face.”

Laurent frowned harder.

“You really offered me a snake.”

“I am surprise you didn’t throw it at my face.”

“I still can.”

And he did just that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading so far! I have the next two chapters started, it should take long!

**Author's Note:**

> It's ridiculously short and I am sorry about that. I am planning to write at least another chapter, but it wouldn't have fit with the challenge.


End file.
